A common and very useful strategic planning tool in PR is the stakeholder map.

A common and not so useful question during stakeholder mapping is: "where do we place bloggers?"

The answer is: "pretty much where you'd place them if they didn't blog — but a bit higher on the impact scale, because their blogs will help them to promote their point of view."

While bloggers should rarely appear on a stakeholder map as "bloggers", it's guaranteed that they'll appear there as politicians, academics, campaigners, journalists and other "switched on" individuals and groups who care enough to communicate a point of view — whether in public or private meetings, in the press, with their peers, and/or through their blogs.